Retrospectives from the Eve of Destruction: Historical Memory and Images of the Past in the Hungarian Jewish Press, 1938–1944

Abstract

Hungarian Jewish leaders during World War II evoked the past extensively in their public statements. They attached current significance to Hungarian national anniversaries, cultural heroes and other historical and national symbols to imbue harsh contemporary events with meaning, to evoke hope, and to offer comfort.

Based mostly on community publications, the article examines four major political and cultural orientations among Hungarian Jewry: the traditional Neologs (as the liberal or reform Jewish religious movement in Hungary was called), the more reflective and self-critical Neologs, Orthodox Jews, and Zionists.